Low-temperature fabrication of polycrystalline Si thin film using Al-induced crystallization without native Al oxide at amorphous Si/Al interface

Youhei Sugimoto, Naoki Takata, Takeshi Hirota, Ken Ichi Ikeda, Fuyuki Yoshida, Hideharu Nakashima, Hiroshi Nakashima

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71 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Low-temperature fabrication of polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin film has been performed by Al-induced crystallization (AIC), and the structural properties have been investigated. In our experiments, to prevent native oxidation of Al film, an amorphous silicon (a-Si)/Al bilayer was formed on the SiO2/Si substrate by electron beam evaporation without breaking the vacuum. The a-Si/Al/SiO2/Si structure was then heated at a low temperature of 400°C to induce AIC. It was confirmed that layer exchange of the a-Si/Al bilayer is induced even though there is no native oxidation of Al film, which was demonstrated by scanning transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis. The mechanism for layer exchange of the a-Si/Al bilayer has been discussed. Furthermore, it was verified by scanning electron microscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry that the a-Si/Al thickness ratio of roughly 1 : 1 is suitable to achieve a flat surface morphology of poly-Si. In addition, it was found, by X-ray diffraction and orientation imaging microscopy, that the Si(111)-oriented grain becomes dominant with decreasing thickness of the a-Si/Al bilayer.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)4770-4775
Number of pages6
JournalJapanese Journal of Applied Physics
Volume44
Issue number7 A
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jul 8 2005

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Engineering(all)
  • Physics and Astronomy(all)

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